Home Office

West Midlands Police

Lord Blencathra: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following the admission by West Midlands Police that in 2010 they withheld a report on child rape, abuse and exploitation, what steps they plan to take to ensure that every police officer and official involved is investigated and criminal charges brought where appropriate.

Lord Bates: On 3 March 2015, the previous government published a report on Tackling Child Sexual Exploitation which set out the government’s national policy response to the failures we have seen in towns, such as Rotherham, Manchester, Oxford and elsewhere, where children were let down by the very people who were responsible for protecting them. The report set out a comprehensive set of reforms to tackle child sexual exploitation.The Government is also making improvements to the police complaints and disciplinary systems to ensure that officers are held to account for their behaviour in a manner that is fair and transparent for the public.The withholding of a report on child rape, abuse and exploitation is a matter for the Chief Officer of West Midlands Police and the local Police & Crime Commissioner.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

China: Religious Freedom

Lord Ahmed: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the persecution of the various religious communities in China.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We remain concerned by all restrictions to freedom of religion or belief in China. Whilst Article 36 of the Chinese Constitution specifies that ‘Citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom of religious belief’, only five religions are officially recognised, and practice is subject to restrictions. We regularly raise our concerns with the Chinese authorities, and did so in detail during the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue in April. We highlight our concerns in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Annual Report on Human Rights. Our concerns are also raised in international fora such as the UN Human Rights Council. We regard freedom of thought, conscience and belief as a fundamental human right and will continue to raise our concerns as part of our broader relationship with China.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Fuel Poverty: Older People

Lord Browne of Belmont: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are currently taking to reduce fuel poverty among older people; and what further steps they plan to take.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Government is fully committed to tackling fuel poverty, including meeting a new 2030 target now enshrined in law.In Policies such as the Warm Home Discount and the Energy Company Obligation continue to deliver vital support to millions of low income and vulnerable homes each year, with households in receipt of Pension Credit being eligible for assistance under both policies.The Government will be guided by the fuel poverty strategy published in March 2015, which sets out a clear policy of working towards improving energy efficiency standards across the English housing stock, including in the homes of the fuel poor.

Civil Nuclear Constabulary

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to review the rules regarding the Civil Nuclear Constabulary's inclusion in provisions for extended jurisdiction or mutual aid, in the light of the one-third reduction in the Ministry of Defence Police and changes in the number of armed police available for anti-terrorist operations across the United Kingdom.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: I refer my noble Friend to the answer I gave him on 8th July 2015, Official Report, col 178.However, we keep this area under general review and this may be considered in the future.

Nuclear Power

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government,further to the answer by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth on 8 July (HL Deb, col 177–180) concerning the annual cost of £3 billion of storing and protecting the United Kingdom’s civil nuclear legacy, whether they will provide details of such costs; and whether they are taken into account when stating the cost per megawatt hour of electricity from nuclear power stations.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The £3 billion per year figure relates to the management of the UK’s civil nuclear liability and arises from historic and current nuclear operations. Sellafield, the UK’s largest, most complex and challenging site, accounts for £1.9 billion per year of this cost. The best estimate for clean-up costs for the UK’s earliest nuclear sites over a 100 year plus programme is set out in the Nuclear Provision which together with the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s (NDA) anticipated costs and expenditure, budget and lifetime financials per site, is made publicly available via the NDA’s website (www.nda.gov.uk).Operators of new nuclear power stations are required by law to make prudent provision for their decommissioning, waste management and waste disposal costs. These costs are taken into account in the cost per MWh of electricity generated by new nuclear power stations. 



Nuclear-provision-explaining-the-costs
(PDF Document, 1.98 MB)

Attorney General

Islamic State: Flags

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many prosecutions there have been as a result of displaying the ISIL flag in the United Kingdom.

Lord Keen of Elie: Proscription is an important means of disrupting terrorist organisations in the UK. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) also known as The Islamic State of Iraq al-Sham (ISIS) was proscribed as a terrorist organization in the UK with effect from 20 June 2014.   Section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000 provides that a person commits an offence if he, in a public place, wears an item of clothing or wears, carries or displays article in such a way or in such circumstances as to arouse reasonable suspicion that he is a member or supporter of a proscribed organisation. Flags would come within the definition of “article”. This is a summary only offence carrying a maximum of six months imprisonment or a fine.   To date there have been no prosecutions in England and Wales as a result of displaying a flag in such a way or in such circumstances as to arouse reasonable suspicion that the person displaying it is a member or supporter of ISIL. A black flag of the type associated with ISIL has featured in a number of prosecutions of individuals for more serious terrorist offences.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Overseas Students

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that overseas students continue to consider studying in the United Kingdom.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 16 July 2015.The correct answer should have been:

The UK welcomes genuine international students and there is no cap on the number that can study here. The Government promotes study in the UK through the Britain is GREAT marketing campaign and through the British Council, which promotes UK education in over 100 countries, connecting millions of people with the United Kingdom.   The Government also has major education agreements with overseas partners. Key programmes include the UK-China Partners in Education Programme, the UK-India Education Research Initiative and engagement in Brazil’s ‘Science without Borders’ scholarship scheme. It has also tripled funding (to £48m) in 2014/15 for Chevening scholarships for international students with leadership potential.   Government also supports student exchange, such as through the Erasmus Scheme, which enables international students to take short placements in the UK and British students to gain valuable overseas experience.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The UK welcomes genuine international students and there is no cap on the number that can study here. The Government promotes study in the UK through the Britain is GREAT marketing campaign and through the British Council, which promotes UK education in over 100 countries, connecting millions of people with the United Kingdom.   The Government also has major education agreements with overseas partners. Key programmes include the UK-China Partners in Education Programme, the UK-India Education Research Initiative and engagement in Brazil’s ‘Science without Borders’ scholarship scheme. It has also tripled funding (to £48m) in 2014/15 for Chevening scholarships for international students with leadership potential.   Government also supports student exchange, such as through the Erasmus Scheme, which enables international students to take short placements in the UK and British students to gain valuable overseas experience.